An agreement between the Scottish Government and 13 church organisations has been reached to take disused churches and church land and use them to provide affordable housing.

The Scottish Government believes that in the coming decade 50 affordable homes could be provided each year following the agreement, which would involve an estimated £35 million of new capital investment.

Under the new Church Property & Housing Programme church bodies will work to supplement existing affordable housing strategies, as well as aiming to support rural communities and develop relationships with planners and developers.

"This Government recognises that tackling and preventing homelessness should be one of our priorities in creating a Scotland we can be proud of in the 21st century," said Communities Minister Stewart Maxwell.

"The Church Property & Housing Programme has the potential to increase the supply of affordable housing by promoting greater use of surplus church properties and sites for affordable housing.

"We recognise the valuable contribution that the voluntary sector makes to tackling and preventing homelessness and addressing wider housing issues in Scotland," he added.

The news follows the release of official statistics earlier in the week showing a fall in homelessness applications to local authorities in Scotland by five per cent, with repeat applications falling almost seven per cent.

The Scottish Government is working to tackle homelessness through removing the right to buy on new social housing, as well as bringing forward £100 million of funding from future budgets to invest in new housing provision.

"It is also important that those that have faced homelessness feel part of our communities – that they feel able to contribute and do not suffer the effects of isolation – and this is never more the case than when re-building their lives after experiencing homelessness," Maxwell concluded today.